FRIDAY - getting my rain dance shoes on
- Bay Area residents leveraging sky-high home prices to take out record loan amounts from credit unions
- Dog owners, rejoice: Downtown San Jose welcomes park for pooches
- California Housing: 40 Years Of Crisis And Counting
- Real estate investors on U.S. coasts target cheap, out-of-state markets
- Rent rebels: these people are getting creative to avoid ridiculous Bay Area rent
- Tile Workbook: New Looks With Classic Subways
Enjoy!
Bay Area residents leveraging sky-high home prices to take out record loan amounts from credit unions - Home equity loans and lines of credit, also known as second mortgages, increased by 11 percent from the second quarter of 2015 to reach $3.9 billion... League Chief Economist Dwight Johnston said a lack of housing supply has also led people to take out second mortgages to fund home improvements. Some homeowners would might normally move to a new house can't afford to and instead are sprucing up their homes.
Dog owners, rejoice: Downtown San Jose welcomes park for pooches - The 2,000-square-foot park — located at 194 Santa Clara St., between San Pedro Street and Almaden Boulevard — has artificial turf, benches, lighting and tree stumps for play. It was created by the San Jose Downtown Association along with neighboring property owners, and it gets its name from a longtime downtown department store that is now shuttered.
California Housing: 40 Years Of Crisis And Counting - California’s Silicon Valley area set records earlier this year as the median home price surpassed $1 million. The natural response, of course, was to blame wealthy tech companies for bidding up housing prices. While blaming the tech industry is a convenient narrative, it misses the main driver of high housing prices—government policies that limit residential construction.
Real estate investors on U.S. coasts target cheap, out-of-state markets - Buyers like Guo are attracted to less glamorous regions where home prices and rents have risen at modest rates in the housing recovery. They're eyeing steady income rather than rapid home-price appreciation.
Rent rebels: these people are getting creative to avoid ridiculous Bay Area rent - "I’ve heard other stories of people living alternatively to avoid rent. People living in RVs, on sailboats anchored in the Bay, taking on exchange students to off-set rent. I met one guy who paid $700 to pitch a tent on top of a garage in Mill Valley. Someone else I know lived in a van for six months to pay off debt. There is one good thing about high rent: people are forced to get creative and think outside the box."
Tile Workbook: New Looks With Classic Subways - Check out 6 eye-popping takes on the traditional tile. Some of my favorites:
